Carbon-neutral ChinaWhile US President Donald Trump concentrated on turning up the political heat on China in his recent address to the United Nations General Assembly, President Xi Jinping surprised many by using his speech to announce China's ambition to become a world leader in tackling global warming and become carbon-neutral by 2060. China is currently the world's biggest producer of carbon emissions and the second largest consumer of coal, after the United States. Moreover, this marks a significant shift away from its previous position that, as a developing nation, it should wait for developed countries to lead the way in reducing emissions. There are good reasons to be optimistic that China can make good on its ambitions. To become carbon-neutral by 2060 will probably require the country to increase the contribution from renewable energy sources from 15% today to something nearer to 85% within four decades.

Source: Bangkok Post October 05, 2020 02:15 UTC